The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2026 ■ 49 WHERE ARE THEY NOW? sports business management and began a career in sustainability communications with international sporting goods com- pany Decathlon. Two years ago, the couple had their first child, Joseph, and thought it might be time to leave their comfortable life in France and return to Davies' roots in North America. In July, her husband was offered a po- sition with NATO in Virginia Beach, Va., so they moved back to the United States full time after living in several locations in France, most recently in Lyon. In October, she introduced her family to the world of college sports by attend- ing the NC State swimming and diving reunion at the Wolfpack's football game against Campbell, her first time back on campus since graduating in 2009. "My husband said he had never seen anything like that before," she said, laughing. "He had never even visited the U.S. before, so it was all new to him. It was pretty overwhelming for my son, too. "I spent the time explain- ing things like pregame tail- gating, how to play football and why there were mas- cots. It was really fun to share it all with them." She took them both to the Willis Casey Natatorium at Carmichael Gymnasium, where Davies has banners and photos commemorat- ing her career. "Look," her son said, "that's Mommy." I n j u s t a few s h o r t months, she's reconnected with many former team- mates in both Virginia and North Carolina, while con- verting to a freelance-based career. And she's been able to reflect on how her col- legiate and educational career, with its many stops and redirections, has cre- ated the pathway to a meaningful profes- sional life. Davies admits she was not a national champion-caliber diver when she first arrived in Raleigh. But she kept improv- ing through the years, despite having no platform at NC State to practice from. She used to travel to Durham to practice at Duke. "I was decent when I got to NC State, but I wasn't phenomenal by any means," she said. "I was lucky that each of my coaches was incredible, and I became a better diver." A Night To Remember Davies kept competing against na- tional-level divers on the 1- and 3-me- ter springboards and traveled to national meets on the platform. By the late win- ter of 2009, her senior season, she fin- ished second on the platform at the ACC Championships and was at the top of her sport by the time the NCAA Zone Trials rolled around. On the same night that wrestler Dar- rion Caldwell won an individual cham- pionship at the NCAA Tournament in St. Louis, Davies gave the Wolfpack its sec- ond title of the day by winning her plat- form event in College Station, Texas. "I was always diving against good com- petition, people who represented their countries in the Olympics, very high-level divers," Davies said. "But I don't think people were paying much attention to me on campus the same way they were pay- ing attention to Darrion, who was having a great year. His was much more expected than mine." In the end, it wasn't as much of a life- altering event as the difficult decision to travel from Winnipeg to enroll at NC State based solely on the recommendation of her club diving coach, without even the benefit of a recruiting trip to see the cam- pus. "I don't think winning a national championship in diving really changed my life, but making the decision to attend NC State certainly did," Davies said. "Ath- letes like to train, and I put so much effort into training in college and afterwards. I had to put a lot of things on hold, like traveling. It changed the whole timeline of where and when I did things. "I think everything has worked out the way it was supposed to." The former NCAA champion may not have made the Olympics, but she created a gold-medal future. ■ Davies, shown here with her 2-year-old son Joseph, recently moved back to the United States after living in France. PHOTO COURTESY KRISTIN DAVIES Tim Peeler is a regular contributor to The Wolfpacker and can be reached at tmpeeler@ncsu.edu. KRISTIN DAVIES WOMEN'S SWIMMING AND DIVING (2006-09) Residence: Virginia Beach, Va. Occupation: Environmental sustainabil- ity communications Did you know? Davies had four differ- ent coaches in her three years of compe- tition. She started with Wolfpack diving coach Mike Finneran, a former teammate of Davies' club team coach. He was fol- lowed by interim coach Becky Benson, who was at NC State for one semester before moving on to James Madison. There was Ted Hautau, who was at NC State for one year before leaving for Ken- tucky. And, finally, there was Jenny Keim Johansen, who was hired to take over the program before Davies' final season. " I don't think winning a national championship in diving really changed my life, but making the decision to attend NC State certainly did." Davies